The American Alliance for Hardwood Plywood expressed disappointment in the April 18 announcement by the U.S. Department of Commerce about imposing preliminary countervailing duties of 9.89 percent on Chinese exporters of hardwood plywood. Continue reading "AAHP expresses dissatisfaction regarding the new duties on Chinese hardwood plywood"
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European sawlog prices continued their downward trend in 2016
Sawlog prices in Europe have been trending downward over the past three years from their record high levels in 2014. Continue reading "European sawlog prices continued their downward trend in 2016"
Sales of forestry machines in Germany and Austria on a downward trend in 2016
Germany, Austria and Switzerland's forestry machine sales have declined in almost all machine classes during 2016.
In Germany, 9% fewer new large-scale machines were sold for professional forestry use, than in the previous year. Above all, the decline in the sales figures for harvesters and forwarders was significant, while the same applies for Austria. There, 17% fewer machines were sold. Continue reading "Sales of forestry machines in Germany and Austria on a downward trend in 2016"
Finnish wood pellets production down 10% in 2016
The production, export and import of wood pellets decreased in 2016, as compared to the previous year, while a new record was set for producers’ pellet deliveries to customers. Continue reading "Finnish wood pellets production down 10% in 2016"
Gabon a source of veneer and plywood for Indian industries
Gabon is well known for its timber resources and the recently completed Special Economic Zone (SEZ) has been promoted in Indian newspapers and invitations extended to Indian wood based industries to take advantage of the opportunities offered by the zone.
The Gabon SEZ is a public-private partnership between Olam International, the Republic of Gabon and the African Finance Corporation. Log supplies will be guaranteed for manufacturers setting up in the zone.
Gabon can supply a wide range of timbers with okoume being the most popular for veneer and plywood production.
Apart from okoume, Gabon’s reserves of exploitable timber are said to extend to 25-35 mil. cu.m of ozigo, 20- 30 mil. cu.m of ilomba, 15-20 mil. cu.m of azobe, 10-20 million cu.m of padouk and large stocks of mahogany, kevazingo, ebony, dibetou, movingui, and Zebrano.
The advertisements in India for the SEZ say companies locating to the zone will enjoy tax benefits and advantageous recruitment conditions.
India has been trying to supplement domestic timber resources through imports from South East Asian countries and some companies have invested in production capacity in Asia to meet domestic requirements of veneers and plywood. But now, because the Gabon SEZ is seen as offering an attractive alternative, some Indian manufacturers have production facilities in Gabon.
Weak start of the year for the US furniture industry
New furniture orders were flat in January compared to the same time last year according to the Smith Leonhard industry survey of residential furniture manufacturers and distributors. In November and December new orders were up 8% and 11%, respectively. Just over half of all survey participants reported order were down.
January furniture shipments increased 2% from January 2016. Inventory levels at distributors and manufacturers were slightly up from December.
January retail sales at furniture stores were unchanged from January 2016 according to US Census Bureau data.
This was despite strong consumer confidence in the economy and higher personal income.
Overall retail sales were up 5% from January last year with strong growth in building materials and garden stores, home furnishings (but not furniture) and car sales. With interest rates still low furniture retail sales are expected to pick up this year.
Despite pre-election promises by President Trump on trade policy there has been no real change and few developments are expected for much of 2017. Wooden furniture imports were at record high levels in January.
US decided to delay deadline for preliminary anti-dumping duties on Canadian softwood lumber
The US Department of Commerce has decided to delay the deadline for preliminary anti-dumping duties on Canadian softwood lumber to June 23, instead of May 4, as originally announced. Continue reading "US decided to delay deadline for preliminary anti-dumping duties on Canadian softwood lumber"
Recovery in EU tropical veneer imports continued during 2016
The upturn in EU imports of hardwood veneer which began in 2013 continued last year. The EU imported 542,000 cu.m of hardwood veneer from outside the region in 2016, 12% more than in 2015. Imports from the tropics increased 10% to 313,400 cu.m, exceeding 300,000 cu.m for the first time since 2011.
However, EU imports of tropical veneer are still well below volumes of over 400,000 cu.m per annum prevailing before the financial crises (Chart 1).
EU imports of veneer from temperate countries increased 14% to 228,900 cu.m in 2016, almost entirely due to a 39% rise in trade with Ukraine to 81,600 cu.m following the country’s decision to implement a log export ban from November 2015 which encouraged increased exports of processed hardwood products from Ukraine in 2016.
EU imports of hardwood veneer from Gabon, the leading tropical supplier, ended the year 19% up compared to 2015 at 167,600 cu.m. This is due both to better consumption in the EU and to rising investment in veneer production capacity in Gabon, on-going ever since the country banned log exports in May 2010.
Strong growth in EU imports of Gabon veneer in the first half of 2016 was sufficient to offset a slowdown in the second half of the year when trade was disrupted during the dispute over Gabon’s presidential election.
In 2016, there were also increases in EU veneer imports from Congo (+9% to 17,100 cu.m), Equatorial Guinea (+17% to 8,400 cu.m) and the Democratic Republic of Congo (+3% to 4213 cu.m). These gains offset a slight decline in imports from Côte d'Ivoire (-3% to 64,700 cu.m), Cameroon (-1% to 
29,900 cu.m) and Ghana (-3.4% to 9,100 cu.m) (Chart 2).
Nearly all the largest EU markets for tropical veneer imported more in 2016. Imports increased into France (+16% to 135,000 cu.m), Italy (+2% to 68,500 cu.m), Spain (+15% to 41,600 cu.m), Greece (+22% to 20,000 cu.m), Germany (+3% to 14,500 cu.m), and Belgium (+62% to 11,300 cu.m). These gains offset a decline in imports by Romania (-36% to 9,400 cu.m) and the Netherlands (-1% to 6,800 cu.m).
Södra raises sawlogs prices as Swedish sawn timber market improves
Canada’s International Trade Minister to promote the country’s wood exports in China
As to promote Canada's wood exports to China, François-Philippe Champagne, the Minister of International Trade, will pay a visit to China from April 21 to 26, 2017. Continue reading "Canada’s International Trade Minister to promote the country’s wood exports in China"
The warm season brings lower wood pellets prices in Germany
The price for wood pellets in Germany has decreased accordingly to the arrival of the warm season. Thus, the price of EN plus wood pellets went down by -3.6% during April 2017, as compared to March, reaching EUR 246.08/tonne. Continue reading "The warm season brings lower wood pellets prices in Germany"
First dowel laminated timber (DLT) manufacturing plant in North America
The first manufacturing plant for dowel laminated timber (DLT) is being built in Canada near Vancouver. DLT panels are engineered wood products similar to cross laminated timber (CLT), nail laminated and glue laminated timber.
Unlike in CLT wood fibres are all in the same direction in DLT. Instead of nails or glue, DLT uses hardwood dowels that expand and lock the softwood into a structural panel. The panels are made entirely of wood without the use of plastic, metal or glue.
The first manufacturing plant for dowel laminated timber (DLT) is being built in Canada near Vancouver. DLT panels are engineered wood products similar to cross laminated timber (CLT), nail laminated and glue laminated timber.
Unlike in CLT wood fibres are all in the same direction in DLT. Instead of nails or glue, DLT uses hardwood dowels that expand and lock the softwood into a structural panel. The panels are made entirely of wood without the use of plastic, metal or glue.
China International Furniture Fair attracts over 191,000 visitors from around the world
The 39th China International Furniture Fair (Guangzhou) (CIFF), which ran from March 18-21 and March 28-31, received 191,950 professional visitors from more than 200 countries and regions around the world, a 13.7 percent year-on-year increase.
CIFF (Guangzhou) showcased a comprehensive lineup of home furniture, home decor and housewares, and home textiles, as well as outdoor and leisure products. Under the theme of "Better Life, Better Work," two phases of the trade show received 3,868 exhibitors from over 30 countries and regions, and more than 200 new product launch events were held during the fair. Two new export pavilions were highlighted during the fair.
"CIFF (Guangzhou) is the grandest gathering in the furniture industry; it brings lucrative profits to our companies. In the last two years we have seen more clients like Huawei, Alibaba, and state procurement institutions hosting conferences, which helps to build a very good information platform for exhibitors like us," said a representative from Guangzhou Victory Group, a modern office furniture manufacturing company.
Pinnacle Awards embraces Asian designers
This year, CIFF became the Pinnacle Awards' exclusive global partner, and they officially launched their Asia-Pacific schedule during CIFF (Guangzhou). These were the first awards to be held outside the U.S. Their goal is to promote product designers who are committed to creating furniture products for the consumer market.
"CIFF not only leads the trends in furniture industry, but also places an emphasis on the pioneering of concepts and products. Every year we strive to break new ground in both trade volume and design while making the overall trade show experience better for everybody," said the CIFF committee.
CIFF will hold its 40th exhibition in Shanghai from September 11 to 14 at the National Exhibition & Convention Center, offering a world-class multifunctional and interactive platform for trading, fashion display, channel maintenance, industry gathering and design inspiration.
About CIFF
The first and largest furniture fair in China, CIFF (Guangzhou) is organized by the China National Furniture Association, China Foreign Trade Center (Group), the Guangdong Furniture Association, and the Hong Kong Furniture & Decoration Trade Association; it is hosted by China Foreign Trade Guangzhou Exhibition General Corp.
Dieffenbacher puts second CPS+ press into operation in Thailand
In April 2015, before the official presentation at Ligna, the Metro-Ply Group became the first company to order the newly developed CPS+ continuous press from Dieffenbacher. Less than two years later, on March 20, 2017, the new "PB Line 3" particleboard plant featuring the CPS+ went into operation.
In addition to the press, which measures 2.65 m in width and 40.5 m in length, Dieffenbacher supplied the drum dryer, the core layer sifter, the forming station with air spreading system—including roller deck, the forming line with prepress, and the entire raw board handling system and the automated raw board storage system.
The Metro-Ply Group will use the new CPS+ plant to produce particleboards for worldwide export. The plant will soon be put into three-shift operation and achieve an annual capacity of over 600,000 m³.
The second CPS+ within the Metro-Ply Group—the third CPS+ sold by Dieffenbacher—will also soon be put into operation. Metro-Ply subsidiary Advance Fiber, based in Kanchanaburi, Thailand, plans to commission a new THDF plant with CPS+ press in the second quarter of 2017.
The US DoC to impose antidumping duties on Chinese hardwood plywood imports of up to 111.09%
The U.S. Department of Commerce said on Tuesday it had made a preliminary finding of subsidies in imports of hardwood plywood products from China and will impose countervailing duties ranging from 9.89 percent to 111.09 percent.
The investigation follows petitions from six privately owned U.S. plywood producers into the imports, which are used in wall panels, kitchen cabinets, table and desk tops, and flooring, Reuters reported.
In 2016, imports of hardwood plywood products from China were valued at an estimated $1.15 billion, Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross said in a statement.
The Commerce Department said it calculated preliminary subsidy rates of 111.09 percent for Shandong Dongfang Bayley Wood Co and 9.89 percent for Linyi Sanfortune Wood Co.
Sixty-two other companies received a subsidy rate of 111.09 percent and all other producers/exporters in China were slapped with a preliminary subsidy rate of 9.89 percent, the department said.
The Commerce Department said it is scheduled to announce its final determination on or about July 5 unless the statutory deadline is extended.
Rise in EU tropical hardwood plywood imports concentrated in the UK
Last year’s increase in EU imports of tropical hardwood faced plywood manufactured in China was heavily concentrated in the UK. In recent years, of all EU importing countries, the UK has been most tempted by the low prices and relatively short transit times offered by Chinese plywood suppliers.
Continue reading "Rise in EU tropical hardwood plywood imports concentrated in the UK"
Biewer Lumber inaugurated $85 million sawmill in Mississippi
Biewer Sawmill-Newton LLC celebrated its new $85 million, state-of-the-art sawmill in Newton with its official opening this Tuesday.
Company President Tim Biewer, Gov. Phil Bryant and other state and local political representatives were among around 100 people attending a ceremony at the facility, which began operating in December.
“Biewer Lumber’s opening is an exciting milestone for the company, the area’s residents and the entire state as it will continue to spur economic growth and create direct and indirect jobs in East Mississippi,” Bryant said in a statement.
Biewer Sawmill-Newton LLC operates four sawmills in the Midwest, as well as three lumber treating/distribution centers, according to the Mississippi Development Center. This is its first facility in the South. It plans to employ 125 workers.
The state-of-the-art sawmill began shipping January 19. Biewer – Newton, LLC will produce an estimated 250 million board feet per year, with a focus on dimensional lumber and timbers. Total investment in the sawmill amounted to US85 million.
With this new production, the mill will allow Biewer to expand mill production in the South -- an area with abundant fiber supply -- with strong support from both local and state government.
The Newton facility brings the total number of Biewer sawmills to five. The Biewer family of companies also includes three treatment and distribution centers and a full-service logistics company.
BID Group was selected by Biewer Lumber to deliver the state-of-the-art turnkey mill for the Newton facility. The Newton sawmill features a state-of-the-art technologies specifically designed, supplied, and installed by the BID Group including a Comact optimized log bucking system, a Comact saw line with profiling systems, and a fully-automated mill outfeed. The planer mill is equipped with the all-new Miller high speed planer, a Comact GradExpertTM and a fully-automated mill outfeed specialized in cut-in-two handling. Lumber drying utilizes continuous kiln technology provided through two Deltech dual path kilns.
About
Headquartered in St. Clair, Mich., Biewer Lumber manufactures and distributes lumber and building materials for use by contractors, builders, and do-it-yourselfers. Biewer customers include retail lumber yards, home centers, and manufacturers throughout the eastern U.S. Products include lumber for construction, secondary manufacturing, and packaging; treated lumber for outdoor projects such as decks, patios, and docks; deck essentials and accessories; fencing; poles and pilings; fire retardant treated lumber for commercial construction; and more.
Review of Japan’s plywood and panel market of 2016
Japan's total wood panel supply was 8,795,762 cbm in 2016, 3% more than in the previous year, with most of the increase being in plywood. Continue reading "Review of Japan’s plywood and panel market of 2016"
Södra retains some of the operations at the Torsås hardwood sawmill
Södra will retain one planing line plus the tongue and groove board line at the Torsås sawmill. Continue reading "Södra retains some of the operations at the Torsås hardwood sawmill"
Guyana expects to conclude FLEGT-VPA negotiations by July 2017
Guyana delegation is on the way to Belgium to finalize the negotiations regarding the European Union-Forest Law Enforcement Governance and Trade (EU-FLEGT) Voluntary Partnership Agreement (VPA). Continue reading "Guyana expects to conclude FLEGT-VPA negotiations by July 2017"
